I often see watch enthusiasts here and on YouTube forgetting some essencial things:

  • Watches are an object in which “The beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. It’s not brand name or bragging credentials that make a watch good or even the design. It’s the personal taste of each of us

  • The price doesn’t make a watch better. The variety and styles of watches can appeal to everyone regardless of their budget. Despite this, people buying fashion watches or less expensive brands, still face backlash

  • Mechanical watches are not always better than quartz and quartz isn’t always better than mechanical. They cater to different types of audience. Usually the community acts like mechanical is always inherently better.

All things considered, it’s wonderful that there’s a brand of watches out there that provides finish and quality that matches a Longines or JLC for a quarter of the price and it makes its own movements for mechanical watches: Seiko.

Seiko, is what the entire Swatch group no longer is. It’s a independent watchmaker. Their Grand Seiko models, rival and even surpass Rolex watches in finish, quality, dial textures and more.

If Seiko was a Swiss brand, it would be the world’s biggest and most valued watchmaker

Having said that, why is it then that there’s so so many complaints about: the glass type they use, the Quality control which fails slightly in like 1/1000 watches? Why does anyone think Citizen can beat Seiko when Citizen’s movements are now a long way from those of Seiko?

Why aren’t more people grateful that a brand like this even exists?

Brings me to the final point: - Watches don’t have to say “Swiss made” to be good. Something that despite true the community also acts like isn’t true.

  • yetanotherpenguin@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    11 months ago

    First: I love seiko. Great products, incredible history, fine watches across the board.

    Regarding fashion watches, I just think they are, for the most part, a rip off and that’s why people look down on them. They look like what they’re not (a quality product). The classic argument is that you could get a much better seiko for the price.

    The mechanical/quartz debate doesn’t exist in my mind. There are fine examples of both at any price range and they’re ultimately very different things doing the same thing… very differently. You buy a quartz for simplicity and accuracy, you buy a mechanical because you have a fondness for intricate machines, you buy a super quartz because you love technology… they all deserve love.

    Now seiko finished like JLC? Nowhere near. A luxury item stands miles away from a consumer good. Yew, grand seiko does rolex quality and finish, but they are their own entity now - I’m not sure you can just throw them under the seiko umbrella.

    But again, seiko is amazing. They do ALL their parts in house. Crystals, quartz and batteries included.

    I don’t think a lot of watch enthusiasts look down on the brand, it’s got everything a good watchmaker should have.

    • Smiths_fan137@alien.topOPBEnglish
      1·
      11 months ago

      Great comment dude. I think you got where Im coming from for the most.

      I edited the JLC paragraph because I was trying to imply obviously that the comparison was with Grand Seiko, it’s a semi independent sub brand but it very much is still on the same umbrella.

      GS itself is seen poorly vs Rolex or JLC and you can see this from comparing value retention rates. It’s not Swiss even if it’s as good or sometimes better

      I hope that the community doesn’t look down on them because…point of this comment is, it’s better than some Swiss brands actually. For example I think many Seikos look far better than a Formex watch.

      The argument for the fashion brands is actually completely valid as I found out after even a Casio lasting more than a fashion watch

    • Prisma_Cosmos@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      11 months ago

      Yew, grand seiko does rolex quality and finish, but they are their own entity now - I’m not sure you can just throw them under the seiko umbrella.

      This isn’t true, Grand Seiko is just a Seiko brand name, like Presage, or Prospex.

      • lethalcure1@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        11 months ago

        It was spun off by seiko in 2017. It has been effectively an independent company for some time now.

        • Prisma_Cosmos@alien.topBEnglish
          1·
          11 months ago

          Grand Seiko isn’t a company, so it can’t be spun off. It’s a brand name owned by Seiko Watch Corp. In 2017 Seiko changed how they marketed the GS brand, and dropped the co-branding on GS watches.

          Around that time, Seiko also created new companies to distribute GS watches in some markets, like GS USA, which might be what you are thinking of.

          • yetanotherpenguin@alien.topBEnglish
            1·
            11 months ago

            No, it’s an independent brand since 2017.

            It’s now related to seiko the same way omega is related to swatch.

            • Prisma_Cosmos@alien.topBEnglish
              1·
              11 months ago

              No.

              Omega is a company with its own leadership, HQ, and production sites.

              Grand Seiko is not a company, it doesn’t have its own Leadership, and it doesn’t have any production sites.

              Longines and Omega have different CEOs. Grand Seiko doesn’t have a CEO, because, like I’ve said, it’s just another Seiko brand.

              Grand Seiko watches come out of the same Epson and SII factories that make millions of cheap quartz movements. The high watch division in charge of assembling GS watches also assembles the high end Seikos and Credors (JDM jewelry watch brand).

              Nothing changed in 2017, besides the words on the dial.

            • Prisma_Cosmos@alien.topBEnglish
              1·
              11 months ago

              It’s very annoying how I’ll patiently explain something, and then people will be like “nah” and not even try to support what they’re saying.